Foods to Eat in Spain - Madrid

- Gallinejas -

Gallinejas are similar to the previously mentioned Zarajos in that they are both made from sheep chitterlings and are found mainly in Madrid. However, Gallinejas varies from the latter in that it isn't just the sheep's small intestine that is eaten as the spleen and pancreas are also used (and perhaps looks even less appetising to the uninitiated). 

Its origins date back to the 1950's, to the bustling Matadero de Legazpi (the slaughterhouse and cattle market of Madrid) whereby instead of wasting the off-cuts and offal at the end of the day, it was given to the surrounding restaurants and tapas bars which used them and turned them into many of the traditional Madrilenian tapas dishes we know and love today like Zarajos, Gallinejas and Riñones al Jerez.

While Gallinejas may sound like a straightforward dish, there are actually many important steps that you might not realise. For example, the meat has to be cooled according to strict traditional guidelines and frying the meat is actually a very involved process. This is because many different meats are fried at the same time in the lamb fat (which has tendency to burn) with the Zarajos going in first, then the sweetbreads, Gallinejas, Los Chorrillos. Los Botones and finally the potatoes (normally half cooked to speed up the cooking time) in that order. In addition, the intestine naturally shrivels up when fried and the cook has to be careful to fry it for the optimum amount of time.

The Gallinejas is then simply seasoned with salt and it is customarily served with other fried foods such as sweetbread, Zarajos or chips and makes for a traditional Madrilenian dish. It can also be eaten on its own as a snack or a tapas, or even with bread in sandwich form.

If you want a specialised restaurant, then try Freiduria de Gallinejas Embajadores, located near the Embajadores Metro Station. As their name suggests, their focus is on Gallinejas and other offal dishes but from my personal experience, the service there can be poor and the food a bit hit and miss. On some days, the Gallinejas is fried beautifully with a lovely crispy exterior and the fries, which is cooked in the same fat, has a irreproducible and distinctive taste. However, on other days, the chitterlings feels like it has been fried the day before and re-fried to warm it up making it soggy, greasy and overall an unpleasant experience.

If you want a more reliable experience, Casa Toni (as I have mentioned a few times) is a safe bet where the tapas dishes are consistently good and fantastic value for money. I didn't put this restaurant first only because their menu changes sometimes so they don't always have Gallinejas but even if you miss it, their other tapas will leave you satisfied and happy.